Someone Like Me
by Fullmetal Ai
Summary: Everything is going well, 4 years after the defeat of Aion. Rosette and Chrno are engaged, and Joshua is fitting in well. But lately, Joshua can't seem to keep his mind off of a certain apostle girl .. or his eyes, for that matter. [JxA CxR] [COMPLETED]
1. Tickle War

**Disclaimer:** **I Don't Own Chrno Crusade. You don't have any evidence saying that I do. So, will all you lawyers PLEASE stop calling my house? Thank You!**

**A/N:** I was looking at Chrno Crusade fanfiction today,

And when I noticed something apparent, it made me think ..

Right then, an idea popped into my head, and made me say,

"I'll make a fic centered on Joshua and Azmaria, though my head will probably shrink!"

... Oh My God. I can't believe I just did that. Oh well! D Anyway, I originally had another fanfiction in mind for my Chrno Crusade fanfiction debut, but I noticed that the quantity of Joshua/Azmaria fanfiction was really ... really .. almost non-existant. o.o; SO! I decided to put an end to that! D Now, I think i'm going to make this a multi-chapter fic, and see how I do with that. People who have read my other fics know that multi-chapter fics and I don't mix at all .. so, i'm going to try get some practice in before I continue writing **One Day** and **Welcome to the House of Chaos**. Okay, enough with the mindless rambling .. here's the story!

_**Someone Like Me**_

_**By: Rika (Akiana-chan)**_

_**Chapter I : Tickle War**_

_'There's something special about this day .. ' _Joshua Christopher thought to himself as he strolled through the forest behind the Magdalan Order. _'Everything's so beautiful back here .. I wonder why I didn't notice this place before?'_ Joshua continued on his way through the dark forest, looking at different flowers, herbs, trees, shrubbery, wildlife .. _'Beautiful .. Beautiful .. Beautiful ..' _He said to himself silently as he pointed out the plants and animals of the wooded area. He then came across a lake, looking out at it's wonderous beauty for a moment, before he looked up again and held his breath, quickly hiding somewhere safe.

In the water of the lake, singing to herself quietly, was the feminine beauty that haunted his dreams often these past few years .. His bright blue eyes roamed over her, starting at the top of her head, trailing down to where her long white hair cascaded down her back, ending at her thighs. He couldn't help but stare at her thighs for a moment before he blushed a bit and looked away, silently scolding himself for looking that long. After he calmed down about the whole 'staring-at-her-thighs' thing, he slowly turned his head to look at her again .. he slowly let out his held breath, so softly that not much could hear it.

" .. Gorgeous .." He whispered softly, loving the word since the instant he had first used it in his vocabulary. Gorgeous. That was the one and only word he could think of to decribe her .. he couldn't describe Azmaria Hendrick any other way, and he never thought about choosing another word. It was the only word that drifted into his thoughts everytime he saw her; Her eyes, her smile, everything about her just screamed the word. _'I'm crazy about her .. she's all I think about these days ..'_

It had been 4 years since he was saved from the grasp of Aion by none other than his older sister, Rosette Christopher, and his soon-to-be brother-in-law, Chrno. Joshua had always dreamed that they would get together somehow, and they would be married, and he would have a niece or nephew; Much to his surprise when Chrno told him he was going to propose to her. Joshua had been overjoyed, but had promised not to tell anyone at all, not even Sister Kate or Father Remington, who he knew were good at keeping secrets .. no, this was a man-to-man secret, which was soon to become public .. _very_ public. In fact, half the order had known about it when Chrno and Rosette came back that night, so by morningtime, everyone had known, or at least had some idea that something special had happened between the two lovebirds.

Chrno had taken her out the same night he had told his plan of proposal to Joshua, and from what Rosette had told him - In an extremely elated manner, no less - he took her to the carnival and they rode the rides, played the games, and occasionally stopped to get some cotton candy, which Rosette promised she would share with her devil, but in the end it was always _her_ who stuffed her face with it.

Chrno had to keep reminding Rosette about the resturaunt, the one they had both wanted to try, but was way too expensive for any of them to afford at the moment they had even thought about it. Chrno had somehow saved enough money to make them a reservation that evening, and, needless to say .. Rosette was excited.

_"It was my dream proposal, Joshua! He was so wonderful, he treated me like .. "_ Joshua recalled his sister rambling on, then pausing for a moment, trying to find the right description. _"Well .. I can't exactly say he treated me like an angel, seeing how he's a devil and all .. but Joshua! I felt like royalty!"_ Rosette sighed, sinking back into a cushiony chair, staring at the diamond ring on her left ring finger, a grin on her face that couldn't be washed away in a thousand years. Joshua swore that she was going to die with that cheerful grin on her face. He was glad his sister was happy, especially after all she and Chrno had been through just to save him ..

This brought him back to his present situation .. Azmaria had done her share in helping as well. He didn't know what he had thought when he had seen her for the first time .. he was still wearing Chrno's horns, and it had altered his thinking pattern quite a bit. He thought he might have felt something special from her .. but after he had gotten over that, he probably thought she was just another Apostle nuisance that Aion had needed. _'But she's like me, in that way,'_ Joshua thought, _'She can relate to some of the things i've been through, and that's probably why we've gotten to be so close ..'_

Once he was rid of Chrno's horns for good, he _and _Chrno were back to their normal selves, and Rosette's remaining life had been prolonged, thanks to Chrno's astral energy from his horns, Azmaria had formally introduced herself to him, explaining that she too was an Apostle, Just like him. At the time, Joshua had merely smiled and told her it was nice to meet her, introducing himself as well, though there really was no need to introduce himself; Rosette had already told Azmaria all about her younger brother. He was the one who they had spent all that time trying to save, after all.

Joshua and Azmaria had become good friends ever since then. Of course, Joshua had a few other friends, but there were none who's friendship he treasured more than Azmaria's. She was his first friend when he came to the order, and she remained to be his best friend, aside from Chrno and Rosette.

_'And .. I fell in love with her .. my one true friend .. and I fell in love with her ..' _Joshua thought as he started to stare at the beautiful 16-year-old girl who was singing in the lake, clad in only her slip. His head rose higher to get a better look at her, admiring her beauty .. admiring the girl .. no, _young woman_ that she had become in a matter of 4 years. Joshua normally wouldn't dare do anything along these lines, as he was slightly afraid of the word 'perverse,' but even as he gained control of where his eyes were looking, he found he couldn't _not_ stare at her for long.

Many guys had come to her and asked her out on dates .. she was very popular among the guys at the order, most of his guy friends among his group even thought the way he did about her! They knew that he was in love with her, and always teased him about his feelings, seeing as he was the one who was closest to her. Joshua always had something to say to them that shut them up, but he knew they were right for the most part.

_"Tell her how you feel, Joshua!" _They always told him. It wasn't the least bit encouraging. He had wanted to tell her oh-so-badly for the past two or three years .. but everytime he tried, he just couldn't bring himself to do it. Before he could even utter a single word to her, he would freeze up, and Azmaria would be left to smile at him sweetly, although he knew that inside she was wondering what was so important. He thought that sometimes he could see a small glimmer of hope in her eyes; but that was probably just his imagination.

His thoughts were interrupted when he realized she had stopped singing, and was staring curiously over in his direction. Joshua held his breath again. _'Damn. Damn, Damn, Damn.'_

"Is someone there ... ?" Her soft, feminine voice drifted over to him. He froze, he stayed where he was, he didn't breathe in fear that she would catch him here and accuse him him being a pervert. She suddenly started walking out of the lake, in the exact direction of where he was hiding. He squeezed his eyes shut, and remained that way, until he heard a small, shocked voice call his name.

"Joshua .. ?" She asked, surprised, but somewhat happy to see him, in a way. Joshua let out his held breath, opened his eyes, and stood up, looking down upon her. He might of seemed calm, but what he did next definately gave away his nervousness.

"Az, I'm really sorry, I didn't mean to spy on you like this, I was just walking through this area, I didn't know you were here, I didn't know this place even exis-" Joshua stopped his hurried exlamation abruptly as he felt Azmaria's hand take his own. He looked her in the eye with a confused expression.

" .. Come join me, Joshua?" She asked softly. Joshua, though he was shocked at her offer, slowly nodded his head, and watched as a huge smile appeared on her face. She pulled him along as she went to the side of the lake, stopping and sitting there with her legs in the water. She looked up at Joshua and nodded, telling him it was all right to sit down. Joshua quickly complied. They were both silent for a moment before Joshua broke the awkward silence.

".. Aren't you going to scold me?" Azmaria looked to him, a shocked expression upon her facial features.

"What?" Joshua sighed and tried to explain again.

"I was looking at you, while you were barely dressed! It wasn't a very good thing to do, and you know how Rosette's always giving me those 'talks,' telling me that I shouldn't stare at women .. so, aren't you going to scold me and tell me how wrong I was for looking?" Azmaria stared at him a little longer, before she looked away and started giggling. Joshua looked to her again, dumbfounded at her response to this whole thing.

"What? Why are you laughing, Azmaria?" He asked her, growing a bit red in the face from embarassment. _'She's laughing at me!'_ He thought in a panic. This only made his friend laugh even harder. Joshua had had about enough of this, and was about to get up and leave, when an idea struck him. He smirked.

"Azmaria .. do you want me to give you something to _really_ laugh about .. ?" He said with a mischevious grin on his face. Azmaria stopped laughing, staring at him with a frightened expression on her face. Joshua thought the look on her face was priceless. He reached his hands out to her sides, just barely touching them, forcing a giggle out of Azmaria.

"Joshua .. what are youAHH!" Azmaria was trying to say, before she erupted into fits of laughter, due to Joshua tickling her gently on her sides. His hands roamed over her sides, then to her stomach when she fell on her back due to her immense laughter. Joshua smirked even more, his fingers moving to her arms, making her laugh harder.

He was surprised when he felt a petite pair of hands grasp his arms, their owner's fingers gliding gently over the skin on his arms, forcing a snort out of him, as he attempted to supress the laughter he knew was going to come out sometime. Azmaria shot up into a sitting position just then, attacking his sides with her fingers until he was laughing so hard that he thought his sides would split. When she was in the transition of bringing her hands from her sides to her stomach, he grabbed her arms before she could, but in the process lost his balance and fell over .. where he was on top of Azmaria.

Joshua pushed himself up, staring at the young lady under him .. his face was now very red, and he could see a pretty blush forming on her cheeks as well. His blue eyes stared into her brown ones, and vice versa; neither of them dared to break eye contact for even a moment. Joshua could feel his heart beating faster, and he didn't know what Azmaria could have been thinking right now .. he wasn't even sure he _wanted_ to know. He didn't realize that his face was slowly leaning in torwards hers.

"Are you all right .. ?" He whispered softly. She nodded her head as best as she could, her eyes never leaving his.

"I'm fine .. are you?" She answered, just as softly.

"I'm wonderful .. " He answered, leaning in more .. more .. his lips almost touching hers ..

**And then ...**

"JOSHUAAAAAAA! AZMARIAAAAAAA!" The familliar voice that belonged to none other than Rosette Christopher called loudly throughout the forest, breaking the two teenagers from their short-lived fantasy. Joshua's head jerked up at the sound of his older sister's voice, a sigh escaping his lips as he realized who it was. He looked down to Azmaria, realizing that he was still on top of her, and scrambling off of her as fast as he could, his face feeling very heated right then. Azmaria sat up and looked away from him, her face extremely red.

"JOSHUA CHRISTOPHER AND AZMARIA HENDRICK! YOU ARE BEING PAGED!" The older girl called from where she stood, which was somewhere close to the backyard of the Magdalan Order, from how far away her voice sounded. Joshua sighed and called back to her.

"WHAT DO YOU WANT, ROSETTE?"

"LUNCH IS READY! COME GET IT BEFORE I EAT IT ALL!" Rosette yelled back, the laughter obvious in her voice.

"WE'LL BE THERE IN A FEW MINUTES!" Joshua yelled one last time, and stood from his sitting position, holding a hand out to help Azmaria up. Azmaria looked to his hand, then to him, then smiled, taking his hand with her own, and pulling herself up so that she was standing.

"I'm going to head back," Joshua said with a smile. "Are you coming?" Azmaria nodded.

"In a few minutes i'll follow. I .. kind of need to change .." She said, the blush appearing on her cheeks once more. Joshua realized that she was still in her slip, which was wet from the lake. He nodded and began to walk away, torwards the order.

When he was far enough so that she couldn't see him, he turned around and began walking backwards. He watched her gather her clothes and dissapear behind a tree that covered everything of her thin frame. An image of her still remained in his mind, however, and he blushed, a small smile appearing on his face.

"Gorgeous .." He muttered to himself softly, then turned around again to walk the rest of the way to the order. He thought about that moment, in which they had almost kissed, and sighed.

"Damn."

**A/N:** YAY! I FINALLY COMPLETED CHAPTER ONE! xD It took me about a week to do it, because everyone is always **_INSTANT MESSAGING_** me .. -glares at all her friends who have prevented her from writing this fanfiction.- Oh well, whatcha gonna do about it? Lol. Anyway, hopefully it won't be too long before I have another chapter up .. hopefully .. e.e; I'm tired. It's 4:38 AM, because I stayed up to write this dear little fluffy fanfiction for you. Okay, maybe it wasn't for you, because no one knew that I was going to do this .. oh, who am I kidding? Yeah, it was for you. Are ya'll happy now? HMM? Okay. Time to get to bed.

**Next chapter** .. Chrno and Rosette know! **-LE GASP!-** And what's better .. Rosette and her dear fiancee are going to play the game that oh-so-many people have played in the past .. their ultimate goal being to get Joshua and Azmaria together! **_Stay Tuned!_**


	2. Operation: Matchmakers!

**Disclaimer:** **WHAT? You want me to say this AGAIN? Well, i'm not saying it. -crosses arms- hmph! -hears the police breaking down her door- WAAAGH! Okay, Okay, I DON'T OWN CHRNO CRUSADE! PLEASE DON'T HURT ME! -squeezes eyes shut. door remains standing, banging noises stop.- hmm? -opens her eyes- Ehh .. heh. **

**A/N:** YES! YOU LIKE IT, YOU LOVE IT, THANK YOU SOOOO MUCH :D I've only got five (5) (V) (cinco) (go) (Okay, i'm stopping with all the different words and crap to describe 'five') reviews so far, but they are .. **my _inspiration!_** Thank you to all three of you! And now, a few comments here and there;

**DoveofLight:** You are the first reviewer! Congrats! You win .. the satisfaction of knowing you are the first reviewer:D Thank you so much for reviewing, I am so glad you liked it! hehe, I have a thing with tickle-flirting. Joshua takes after his sister, I guess :P

**Jazzy Uchiha:** Thank you! I hope the fic becomes even greater!

**Katrina-chan:** OMG! ANOTHER -CHAN NAME :D Lol. You know something? I was once in the saaaaaaaame situation you were in before you read this .. I kept waiting and waiting and _waiting_ for an Azzy/Joshi fic to come out of the shadows .. I kept peeking into all the shadows I could find, calling out to it .. _"Hello ... Azzy .. Joshi .. where are yooooooou? You two have to get together, you know ..." _And that's when it hit me! "I'm an authoress! I'll make one of my own!" :D And this is the result. Although things are about to get veeeeeery humorous .. hehehe .. Chrno and Rosette know .. hehe .. o.o; yeah! So, keep reading, keep reviewing, keep writing, and if you get any ideas of your own for an Azzy/Joshi fic .. don't be afraid to write it out! I would like to read it :D Thank you for reviewing, I am soooo happy that people like it :P

**Kisho Myst:** (1) Yes, it's very fluffy. I live for fluff-ness:D (2) Updating now! n.n (3) Thanks for your review! You have made me a very happy Rika-chan! (Or Akiana-chan, whichever you prefer!)

**FalleenangelJulian:** Okay, okay! I'm updating! As for your question of Rosette's virginity .. i'll leave that to your dirty mind, hehehe .. xD Thanks!

**Now that we have that over with .. On with Chapter II!**

**  
**

_**Someone Like Me**_

_**By: Rika (Akiana-chan)**_

_**Chapter II : Operation - Matchmakers!**_

Rosette Christopher smirked to herself as she watched her younger brother eat his lunch. He was eating everything hungrily as if he had been starving for weeks; He was gulping down his drink as if he were severely dehydrated; _and he never looked up once._ Rosette had to admit, it was really funny to see Joshua acting this way, but she didn't dare laugh. This was very abnormal behavior for her younger brother. Coincidence? No, Rosette knew her brother too well, especially when he acted weird like this. Something was up.

The way he never looked up, not even for one small half of a millisecond, told her only one thing: He was trying to avoid something. _'Or could it be some**one** rather than some**thing**?' _Rosette thought to herself with a sly grin. She looked over to Azmaria, who was sitting across from Joshua. She was doing the same thing, only much calmer, and much slower. She was eating and drinking normally enough, she just never looked up. _'Aha .. I see now!'_ Rosette's grin grew wider as she came to a conclusion as to what was going on; She had had a hunch about this, but now she was all too sure that Joshua and Azmaria were in love. _'Let's see .. judging by the way the two of them are acting, I would say it's quite possible that they have both realized it .. they just haven't told each other.'_ Rosette looked to Joshua again. Sighing before finally speaking.

"Soooo .. Azmaria, Joshua .. what were you two doing in the forest _together_ today?" Rosette's eyes said it all; she was teasing them. Joshua and Azmaria finally looked up from their plates, a blush becoming apparant on both of their faces as they remembered the events of earlier that day.

"W-we were .. uhm .. we .. were .. " Joshua stuttered, the blush on his face getting darker with each word.

"Taking a walk!" Azmaria finished with a cheerful tone in her voice, though the blush remained on her cheeks.

"Really .. did you two find anything interesting?" Rosette asked. Joshua was blushing too hard to answer that, so he just let Azmaria do the talking. She seemed to be doing a better job of it, anyway.

"Well .. there's this really nice lake in the middle of the forest, it's really beautiful there, plus it helps cool you down when you're hot, and .."

"Is it _romantic_, Az?" Rosette seemed interested.

"Uhh .. Y-yeah, I guess you could put it that way, Rosette .. " Azmaria tried to remain calm throughout saying that entire thing. There was no doubt about it that the place was beautiful, but _romantic?_ She thought back to what had happened earlier once more, and blushed harder, averting her gaze to the table. _'Yes, it most definately is romantic, Rosette.'_

"Great!" Rosette exclaimed excitedly. "How about we all go there tomorrow? You, Joshua, Chrno, and I?" Joshua looked to his older sister and raised a questioning brow, sensing that she was up to something. Rosette caught this and frowned at Joshua.

"What's that supposed to mean, Joshua?" Rosette asked, almost evily. Joshua gulped.

"N-nothing .. " Rosette smiled brightly once again.

"So, how about it Az?" Azmaria smiled cheerfully, though she was nervous about this whole idea of Rosette's.

"Sure! Why not?" Rosette clapped her hands together a few times in her excitement, standing up from her seat that instant.

"All right! Excuse me, I _have_ to go tell Chrno!" Rosette chirped, then ran out of the cafeteria, leaving only Joshua and Azmaria in the room, staring in the direction that Rosette had left in.

"What was that about .. ?" Joshua asked.

"No clue .." Azmaria answered, then looked to Joshua, smiling brightly. "Excuse me," She said, standing from her chair.

"Where are you going?" Joshua asked innocently.

"To choir practice." Joshua smiled as well, standing up too.

"Excuse me, then. May I walk you to the choir room?" Azmaria blushed a little more, than smiled and nodded.

"Yes, you may," She responded, walking to the door and waiting for Joshua to catch up. Once he did, they both left, walking beside each other. Their destination: The choir room.

Chrno sat on the side of the fountain found in the courtyard of the Magdalan order, a calm and peaceful look resting upon his facial features. Anyone who happened to pass by him at the moment would think nothing of it; they had seen the devil sitting there more than once, and it was almost like a normal everyday routine for him. There were occasionally a few friendly greetings, but other than that they left Chrno to his thoughts. Nobody dared to break Chrno from his pensive state of mind; Nobody but Rosette, that is.

/-/

Rosette skipped happily out into the courtyard, knowing that her darling fiancee would be out here, most likely deep in thought. It wasn't long after she had taken her first step into the area that she spotted Chrno sitting on the edge of the fountain, her suspicions proving to be correct. Rosette smiled. She always could seem to tell when Chrno was thinking about something .. and oh, how she _loved_ breaking those thoughts with her presence, which Chrno adored every second of. Rosette smirked her usual mischevious smirk, which told everyone around her that she was planning something. The poor souls just didn't know how big her plan really was.

"Chrno!" Rosette squealed cheerfully as she sat herself on Chrno's lap and flung her arms around his neck. Chrno broke out of his thoughts, smiling at his fiancee and bringing his face closer to hers so that they were touching foreheads, staring into each other's eyes.

"Hello love," Chrno said quietly so that only she could hear him and placed a quick kiss upon her lips. Rosette wore a silly schoolgirl grin at that moment and hugged Chrno closer to her before pulling away with the same mischevious smirk as before. She stared at Chrno, who's expression become that of surprise, then horror.

"Rosette! What are you planning this time?" Rosette laughed loudly at his reaction.

"Relax! You're probably going to help me with it anyway!" Chrno sighed heavily.

"It depends on what it is, Rosette." Rosette frowned for a moment, then grinned again.

"You're definately going to want to help, Chrno. It's for my brother .. and our friend." Chrno rose a brow at this statement.

"Do I really want to know what's going on?" Chrno said questioningly. Rosette and Chrno then heard laughter coming from somewhere to the side of where they were sitting, and both heads turned to see who was coming nearer. Joshua grinned boyishly, while Azmaria tried hard to supress her laughter. Apparantly, Joshua had said something funny to make Azmaria laugh like that. They both stopped outside of a room, which Rosette quickly recognized as the choir room, seeing as Azmaria went to choir practice almost every day, and Rosette was the one to show her to the room on the first day. Joshua smiled and asked something, to which Azmaria nodded. Rosette figured he was asking if he would see her later, which she knew that Joshua often did, not just to Azmaria, but to his other friends. Joshua then waved and walked off, while Azmaria waved as well and dissapeared into the room they had stopped at. Rosette sighed dreamily.

"What are you thinking, Rosette?" Chrno asked innocently. Rosette looked to Chrno, surprised.

"Chrno .. you mean you haven't _noticed_ anything?" Rosette asked.

"What is there to notice?" Chrno asked, all the more innocent. Rosette frowned. _'He's more dense than I thought .. '_

"You're saying you haven't noticed anything between Joshua and Azmaria."

"No?"

"Chrno .."

"Yes?"

"It's staring you in the face, and you haven't noticed it. Damn, you're slow .. " Chrno looked a bit hurt.

"That was harsh, Rosette."

"I know, but .. you haven't noticed that they are in _love_?" Chrno's eyes widened.

"Joshua is in love?"

"With Azmaria," Rosette finished.

"And she loves him too?"

"It would seem so!" Rosette said with a grin.

"How do you know?"

"If you would have been at lunch today, you would have seen that the two of them were blushing madly, and they wouldn't look up from their plates at all until I said something." Chrno knew what Rosette was planning right then, and he smiled.

"So, what are we going to do about it, love?" Rosette squealed and hugged Chrno tightly.

"I knew you would help me!" Rosette exlaimed excitedly.

"Usually I wouldn't, but knowing those two, they're going to need a little help," Chrno said and hugged Rosette just as tightly. Rosette pulled away and grinned.

"Joshua and Azmaria were in the forest behind the order together today. I get the feeling that it was an accidental meeting, and something must have happened, judging by the way those two were acting at lunch," Rosette recalled the memory of what was going on at lunch with an almost-evil grin.

"So, where in the forest were they?" Chrno asked.

"They found a lake somewhere in the forest. I never knew where it was, because I was always too busy to go exploring back there. But anyway, i've arranged it so that you, Azmaria, Joshua and I will be taking a visit there tomorrow, to take a break from everything," Rosette said slyly. "Besides, Az told me it was romantic." Chrno thought it over for a moment, then nodded.

"Good idea. How are we going to get them together, though?" Rosette looked around suspiciously, looking for anyone who might have been listening at the time before leaning closer to Chrno and beginning to whisper her plans to him quickly. Chrno listened for a moment, then he smiled.

"You've been planning this since lunch, haven't you?"

"Yup."

"Sounds good. If I think of anything more, i'll tell you," Chrno whispered to her quietly, then shot her a handsome-yet-playful smile and stood up from his sitting position, catching Rosette in his arms as she was falling off of his lap. He carried her bridal style over to the front door of the order, before setting her down on her feet once more. Rosette, who was blushing a bit because of what Chrno had just done, looked to Chrno with the usual laughter in her bright blue eyes.

"Was that practice for our wedding day, Chrno?" She asked playfully. Chrno's face leaned down and captured Rosette's lips with his own, locking them in a deep kiss. They pulled away from each other a minute later, and a smiling Chrno answered her question.

"Yes .. and because I wanted to surprise you." Rosette took Chrno's hand and walked into the building.

"We haven't really planned anything for the wedding yet, you know .." Rosette said matter-of-factly.

"Is that what we're going to do now?" Chrno asked.

"Well, we have to start sometime!" Rosette exlaimed excitedly. Chrno chuckled.

"All right then."

/-/

**A/N:** WAIIIII! Finished with Chapter II! I am sooooooo happy with this chapter, it was really fun to write :D Anywaaaaaaay .. I was planning on telling you about another CC fanfiction that i'm planning on writing when I finish with this one, and the other one will definately be a one-shot, dedicated to my old boss .. but I always get really bad luck whenever I tell people about my upcoming stories. I just never end up finishing them. So, i'm going to see if I can finish this one before I can say anything for sure. Let me tell you, though .. you will DEFINATELY be seeing me again after this fanfiction is finished. I love this series too much, and writing fanfiction about it is just oo fun! So, I guess things'll happen if they happen. For now though, do be so kind and review for me, please? Oh yeah! and if anyone has an idea that they would like to see happen in this fanfiction, just leave it in a review, and i'll see if I can fit it in, okay? I run out of ideas really easily, as you can see by my unfinished multi-chapter stories, so if you have any ideas that you just can't seem to write about on your own, and that you would like to see someone else take a shot at, please, don't be afraid to tell me:D Thank you, and happy readings!

**_Next Time ..._** The day has come! Chrno, Rosette, Azmaria and Joshua return to the lake to spend some time away from the stressful life of the Magdalan Order. What do Chrno and Rosette have planned in order to get Azmaria and Joshua to admit their feelings to each other? **_Stay Tuned!_**


	3. Escapades at the Lake

**Disclaimer:** **I don't own Chrno Crusade. If I did, there would be more Joshua and Azmaria moments, and Chrno and Rosette wouldn't have died in the anime(or the manga, for that matter)!**

**A/N:** I'm so sorry I took so long to update! The end of the grading period for my school was Wednesday(March 16, 2005), and I have been working like HELL to catch up. It is currently Friday, March 18, 2005, 5:01 PM. You see how fanfiction can affect your grades? Oh well. I'll catch up sooner or later. I just hope I don't get bad grades on my report card, i've been lucky so far. If I do get bad grades, don't expect me to be updating for a while, because my computer will be taken away and I won't be able to type it up. Aye .. Why did the government have to make school? If we can learn everything from a computer these days, why do kids need to go to school? Anyway, Here's chapter 3! Hope you like!

.o. A note about the swimsuits .. yes, they had them back then. The girls only had one piece suits, and sometimes the men wore something similar to the women's swimsuits, though they also had the ones that looked like shorts, like these days. This story takes place in 1932.

.oo. And a note about the CPR .. I have no clue if they knew about this in 1932. If they didn't, Joshua was acting on impulse. Okay! Read!

oo

_**Someone Like Me**_

_**By Rika(Akiana-chan)**_

_**Chapter III: Escapades at the Lake**_

Sunshine filtered the room through a nearby window, illuminating the face of the blonde-haired, blue-eyed teenager as he slept. Joshua groaned and rolled onto his side, facing away from the window, and the dreaded daylight that dared to try and wake him. His eyes remained closed, though by this time he was half awake. He breathed in deeply, and let it out again before trying to lull himself back to sleep. He was succeeding so far, but just as he was about to fall back into the darkness of his peaceful slumber, something woke him up .. or rather, _someone._

"RISE AND SHINE, JOSHUAAAAAAAAA!" A cheerful voice shouted, the sound filling the room almost immediately. Joshua's eyes snapped open in that instant and he bolted into a sitting position, but was knocked back again by the force of none other than his older sister Rosette colliding with him as she hurtled herself onto Joshua's bed, wrapping an arm around his neck and giving him a noogie. Joshua was angry for Rosette's interferance with his much-needed sleep, but nonetheless laughed and tried to get her to stop her noogie assault on him.

"Rosette .. sister, stop .." Joshua said between laughs, which made Rosette laugh as well.

"C'mon, you've gotta get up! We're going to that lake today, aren't we? And Azmaria's acting a bit weird today, it's as if she's nervous about going to the lake! I mean, come on! It's just a lake, isn't it?" Rosette said with a grin, detaching herself from him and standing next to the bed to reveal that she was wearing a long yellow skirt and an old, loose blouse. Underneath she was wearing her golden swimsuit, no doubt.

Rosette grinned excitedly and bounded over to Joshua's dresser, opening a drawer and digging through Joshua's clothes. She frowned at the piles of clothes that just seemed to be literally thrown into the drawers.

"Damn, Joshua! You seriously need to learn some organizational skills!" Rosette stated as her hand dug through the piles of clothes as she tried to find what she was looking for.

"Nope, not here .." She said, then closed that drawer and opened another one, starting her search over again. Joshua sat up and watched for a moment, then let out a heavy sighed as Rosette slammed another drawer closed and moved onto the next one.

"It's not like being unorganized dosen't run in the family, you know .." He said jokingly. Rosette laughed.

"You've got that right. Chrno's the organized one around here. He always complains when he has to do chores, but he does them a hell of a lot better than I do," Rosette said, then added "No pun intended."

"You can say that again .. " Joshua said with a small smile.

"A-_HA!_" Rosette suddenly exlaimed. Joshua winced, fearing that his older sister was going to pulverize him. He knew she was capable of doing just that, too. Rosette turned around and grinned at her younger brother, throwing a blue swimsuit at him. It landed on his face and he pulled it off with a glare torwards Rosette. Rosette just grinned even more at her brother's glare.

"Put them on. We're going to the lake whether you like it or not, Joshua." Joshua glared even more at Rosette.

"And what if I don't?" Rosette put on a glare more evil than Joshua could ever conjure, staring at him as if she were going to kill him if he didn't agree.

"YOU'RE COMING WITH US!" Rosette said in a frightening voice that made Joshua cower in fear.

"Fine .." Joshua said in a small voice, then repeated himself. "Fine .." Rosette's jovial grin returned and she walked torwards the door, opening it and stepping out halfway.

"Meet us at the entrance to the forest in 5 minutes .. _or else._" She stepped the rest of the way out and closed the door behind her. Joshua let out the breath he didn't know he was holding and began to strip out of his night clothes.

"Damn, she's scary when she's angry .. " He thought back to what Rosette had said about Azmaria acting weird, and he blushed. His mind replayed the scene from the day before at the lake when they had almost kissed, and his cheeks became darker. _'I'll bet that's why she's nervous. But what would that mean? Is she afraid I would try something like that again? Or even worse .. ' _He shook his head to clear the thought from his mind.

"You can't start thinking things like that, Joshua. As far as you know, she's not interested," He said to himself, but a part of him didn't believe it entirely; he may have said he thought she would never fall in love with a guy like him in her life, but he also had his suspicions. _'She didn't ask me to stop when I started tickling her .. she seemed to be having a lot of fun ..' _He shook his head again. _'No. N-O. I'm just a friend to her, nothing more.' _Joshua then heard a knock at his door and quickly pulled an old shirt over the top half of his body, then walking to the door calling out to the one person he was certain would be there behind the door when he opened it.

"All right, all right! I'm coming Roset-" When he opened the door, though .. he saw that it wasn't his sister. Far from her, actually.

_Azmaria._

"Az .. " He said, surprised, but still managing a kind look in his eyes torwards her. He felt the heat rising in his cheeks, as it usually did when he was around her. He tried not to look at her, but she was definately breaking all of the rules of dresscode of the Magdalan Order. A lavender one-piece swimsuit hugged her small frame perfectly, and her hair was pulled up into a high ponytail that ended a little past her shoulders. His eyes wandered over her in shock, and he found himself looking in all the wrong places once more. He averted his gaze to her face, relieved that she hadn't looked up at him yet. He reached his right hand out and placed it gently-but shakily-on her shoulder, which caused her to finally look up at him, the blush becoming even more apparant on her face. _Gorgeous._ There was that word again. There was no doubt in his mind that she was beautiful. But she was so much more than that; _She was gorgeous._ She always would be, in his eyes.

"Joshua, I .. " She paused, as if thinking of the right words to say, then started again. "I came to see if you were .. feeling okay." Joshua was taken aback by this display of affection, however small it may be. _'She came to see if I was okay ..'_ He put on a grin that showed his gratitude.

"I'm fine, Az .." His hand fell from her shoulder, down her arm, and grasped her petite hand in his own rather large one. He squeezed her hand to reassure her. Joshua noticed the slight darkening of the color on her cheeks, and felt his heart leap when her hand grasped his in return. They stared at each other for a moment, smiling as if they were telling each other 'It's all right. I'm here for you.' Neither Joshua nor Azmaria noticed that their faces were once more inching closer to one another, to the point where Azmaria was standing on her tip-toes, and Joshua was leaning down to meet her halfway. Their lips were almost in contact with each other, when ..

"Azmaria! What in God's name is taking so LONG?" Rosette shouted as she came around the corner of the hall, obviously on her way to Joshua's room, and obviously very peeved about not already being at the lake.

Joshua and Azmaria jerked away from the trance they were in, looking torwards the direction of Rosette's voice. They immediately let go of each other's hand, and stepped away, doing anything they could think of to make it seem like nothing had happened. Rosette stood a few doors in front of Joshua's door, and leaned against the said door with an all-knowing smile.

"Is there something going on between you two that I should know about?" Rosette asked, the glimmer in her eyes again. Joshua and Azmaria looked at Rosette, then at each other, then burst out laughing.

"What _are _you talking about?" Joshua said between laughs.

"Can't a girl go check and see if her friend, who _happens_ to be a _guy,_ without being accused of something happening?" Azmaria did the same. The two started walking past Rosette and out to their meeting spot, at the edge of the forest. In the back of their minds, both Azmaria _and_ Joshua knew that Rosette knew about their silenced feelings torwards each other; Oh yes, they knew in that certain are in the back of their minds .. they just chose to ignore it, and were almost oblivious to the fact that Rosette _did_ in fact know .. _almost._

Rosette grinned. This just might be easier to pull off then she originally thought ..

oo

Fifteen minutes later, the group arrived at the lake as planned. They were a little late in getting there, but they had gotten there, and in the book of Rosette, that was all that really mattered. Rosette took a look around the area, staring in awe. Chrno had a serene look upon his face; it was obvious he felt a calming presense here, and knew that they would be at peace. Besides, Rosette was going to be an Excorcist of the Magdalan Order for another month at the least, which meant she never went anywhere without her gun .. _never._

Chrno often thought that Rosette was engaged to her _gun_, and not to him. But he didn't let that get to him. That was the everyday typical Rosette that he knew .. and that he loved with all of his heart. He wouldn't change her for all of the astral energy in the world; he loved her just the way she was, and he made sure she knew that every day that she spent on this Earth with him. Rosette would always whine and say something along the lines of "_**Again**?_ _Chrno, this is the seventy-millionth time you've told me that you love and cherish me this week!_", but he knew that Rosette enjoyed his displays of affection torwards her, and she returned it just as much .. usually with a more physical gesture, like a kiss, or an embrace. Rosette wasn't one to voice her feelings. She just could never find the right words to explain exactly how she felt, which Chrno knew would take her forever to explain to him, even if she could find the words. Rosette was impulsive. It never took her a long time to find something to _do_ to express the way she was feeling. He knew when she was angry(Everyone did, for that matter), he knew when she was sad(Though she rarely ever cried. It would take something intense to make her shed a tear), and he also knew when she was so happy that she felt her heart would burst(He loved her the most when she was this way). Rosette made him happy. She made his heart melt when she smiled, and tore his heart into shreds when she frowned, or cried as she so rarely did. It was usually hard for other people to know when she was covering a sad emotion up with cheerfulness; But Chrno could always see right past it, and try to help her through the rough time as best as he could. That's what he was there for, and he knew that's what he would always be there for. He sealed the first part of his _new_ contract when he proposed to her, and when she accepted his proposal to become his wife, and to be with him forever. The bond was, still is, and always will be there. It started when she was only twelve years old .. and it would continue as long as they both shall live; the basic idea of marriage.

"Chrno! Chrno!" Rosette said excitedly, breaking the devil out of his thoughts. Chrno looked down at her with the smile that he saved only for her. Rosette knew this smile well. She had seen it every day since the day they both had admitted their feelings to each other, and started the journey of their relationship .. or had she seen it many times before that? She knew she had been seeing it for an extremely long time, and that was all she needed to know. He loved her. And she loved him. Their feelings were the same, and she knew, deep in her heart, that they would always feel the same way. Rosette grabbed Chrno's hand and tugged on it like a young child, silently asking him to follow her. Chrno gladly complied, and followed her to a secluded area, away from the other two lovebirds. She sat down and motioned for him to do so too.

"Chrno," Rosette started, "When I went in there to get Azmaria and Joshua, they looked as if they were hiding something."

"So .. do you think ..?" Chrno asked, startled, and a bit dissapointed that he couldn't help in getting them together. He was secretly relieved when Rosette shook her head.

"I don't think so. Joshua can't keep a secret, remember?" She asked Chrno, who nodded in reply. Rosette was referring to when she and Joshua had first met Chrno, when they were only eleven and twelve years old, when they were still living at the Seventh Bell Orphanage near where Chrno's supposed 'resting place' was. Joshua always blurted out things that he wasn't supposed to say, even when he didn't mean to. Joshua may be a a lot calmer than his older sister, but he could be just as impulsive.

"I think something happened between them. It may have been a bit different than how they were acting at lunch yesterday, but it had its similarities. They're getting closer to admitting how they feel. Our job is to give them a jump start." Chrno thought this over for a second or two, then nodded again.

"This changes everything .. So what do we do now?"

Rosette grinned mischeviously. "Anything we can do to get them together in a somewhat awkward situation."

"HEY! What are you two talking about over there?" Azmaria called from her sitting area at the edge of the lake, where she was sitting next to Joshua.

"Things you kids shouldn't know about!" Rosette called back, treating them as if they were a lot younger than they really were. Joshua rolled his eyes.

"Ha-ha, funny Rosette. Really, what are you two talking so seriously about?" Chrno looked at Rosette and smiled. He had a cover-up story for a situation like this. He pulled his fiancee closer to him and wrapped loving arms around her.

"It's nothing really, we're just talking about .. what we're going to do on our _wedding night_ .." He looked into Rosette's eyes and smiled, seeing a smile of approval cross her face. "Isn't that right, love?" Chrno added, to make their tale more believable.

"You better believe it!" Rosette replied and leaned up to place a kiss on his lips, which he gladly returned. Azmaria and Joshua made a face.

"Get a room, you two!" Joshua joked, but still looked a little bit disgusted.

"Agreed." Azmaria said softly. Rosette and Chrno broke their kiss, and looked to the two of them with a grin.

"Joshua, you'll talk about it as well when you're engaged. It happens to all couples," Chrno stated. He already treated Joshua like a younger brother, although he wasn't legally his brother-in-law until the day of the wedding.

"And you'll be forced to talk about it with _your_ future husband, Azzy!" Rosette joked, which got a look from Chrno.

"_Forced_, Rosette? Oh no, I never have to _force_ you to talk about it with me," Chrno said jokingly, though every word was true. "You always welcome the conversation!"

Rosette giggled. "Guilty!" They engaged in another liplock, only letting it go when both Joshua and Azmaria were looking away from the 'grotesque sight.' They looked to each other and grinned, standing up quietly and sneaking in back of the two oblivious teenagers, who were looking into each other's eyes, whether they realized it or not. They were lucky that neither of the two noticed them, or their plan would have been spoiled. Rosette looked to Chrno and nodded, mouthing the words "One .. Two .. Three!"

On the third count, Rosette put a hand on the back of Joshua's head, Chrno put a hand on the back of Azmaria's head, and they both pushed their faces together to that their lips met for a moment. They both pulled away quickly, however, their faces bright red. Once they had gotten over the shock of what had just happened, however, they both turned to shoot angry glances at Rosette and Chrno, who were laughing insanely at what they had just accomplished, but more so at the look of their faces, not to mention the bright color that they had become. Joshua and Azmaria stared at them for a few more moments, seeing that they weren't going to stop laughing anytime soon, then looked to each other and grinned evily, each knowing what the other was thinking. They got up silently, like the two before them, and walked stealthily to the back of the pair of laughing hyenas, looking to each other once more before Azmaria mouthed the same words that Rosette had mouthed before her. Before Chrno and Rosette knew it ..

They were sopping wet. Joshua and Azmaria had pushed them into the lake while they were having their laughing fit. Now it was the younger two's turn to laugh. Chrno and Rosette resurfaced with angry glares directed at Joshua and Azmaria. The two caught sight of their glares and immediately stopped laughing. Chrno spoke first.

"Joshua .. Azmaria .. " Chrno started, but before he could finish, Rosette intruded.

"THIS MEANS WAAAAAR!" Rosette yelled at the top of her lungs with playful anger, though it was enough to convince Joshua and Azmaria that they were going to be dog meat in a matter of minutes. Before they knew it, they were being pulled into the lake and splashed with vast amounts of water. Joshua laughed, splashing them as much as he could, but after a few seconds he noticed that Azmaria wasn't there .. Wait! Azmaria wasn't there .. Joshua turned around with a gasp, which caused Rosette and Chrno to stop splashing and look to see what was wrong .. and then they noticed.

"Azmaria!" Joshua gasped, before diving underwater in his frantic search to find her. Rosette and Chrno soon dove in after Joshua, joining in the frantic search for their friend. Half a minute later, Joshua resurfaced, carrying a limp, pale-skinned Azmaria in his arms. Luckily, he was close enough to the edge of the lake so that he could get her to land without any trouble. He layed her down on the sand, climbing out of the lake and kneeling beside her at rapid speed. He didn't know much about medical techniques, since he was healed by Chrno's horns and not some miracle medicine, but he knew enough to know how to check a pulse, and to perform CPR .. that was the least he could do. He checked her pulse, which was weak, but was there nonetheless. He put his ear close to her heart, listening for any sign of a heartbeat. By the time he figured out that Azmaria has breathed in water, Rosette and Chrno had come to stand in back of them, holding onto each other for fear of their dear friend's life. Chrno looked to Rosette.

"Rosette, run back to the order. Get the doctor." Rosette nodded and ran off quickly in search of the Order's only doctor. She, as well as Chrno and Joshua, hoped that the doctor knew the meaning of the word 'emergency.'

Chrno watched until Rosette was out of sight before looking back to Joshua, who was by now trying to breathe air into the girl's lungs. If anyone had doubted before that Joshua truly cared about Azmaria, this would undoubtedly change their mind. Chrno saw then just how much Joshua loved and cared for Azmaria; he may not be able to express his feelings for her just yet, but he would do anything for her. Stubborn people could see this act of heroism and still say that they were only friends, nothing more .. but if they could see the look of worry on Joshua's face, the tears in his eyes .. they would understand. Chrno certainly did. He had his doubts about it when Rosette had first brought it to his attention, but now he realized ..

_Those two were meant for each other._

Azmaria may not have been awake at this time, but he knew that if it were the other way around, she would be doing the exact same thing. She wasn't as impulsive as Joshua or Rosette, but if Joshua were in trouble, she would jump at the chance to save him. That's exactly how they felt about each other. It was himself and Rosette all over again.

Chrno was brought back to reality when he heard Azmaria cough up some water. Joshua held his finger in front of her nostrils to find that she was breathing again and smiled widely, relieved that she was alive .. and that she would live with him for a while to come. By this time, Rosette was returning with the Order's doctor. The doctor ran to the young girl's side, opposite from Joshua, who wouldn't leave her side, even if he was going to be killed for it. The doctor checked Azmaria's pulse, as Joshua had done earlier. and felt that a pulse was there, beating stronger than when the boy on the other side of the girl had checked it. He listened to her heartbeat, checked her breathing, and determined that everything would be back to normal shortly, and that Azmaria would be fine.

"She's been through quite a scare today, so she needs to get some rest. Bring her back to her room, she'll be in bed for a minimum of 2 days, maybe longer. It's just until she gets over the shock. I'll come check on her every afternoon." The doctor said, nodding to Joshua as if telling him it was all right for him to lift her and carry her back to her room. Joshua immediately complied with this request, lifting her carefully off of the ground and walking back torwards the order, the lovely girl in his arms breathing softly against his neck, soothing him of the scare that he had shared with her, as well as his sister and future brother-in-law.

oo

It was a little past three in the morning at the Magdalan Order. Moonlight still shone brightly outside, and filtered in through the window, illiminating the innocent face of the sleeping sixteen-year-old, shining off of her hair, and making her look like an angel. The blonde nineteen-year-old boy sitting in a chair by her bedside would have taken notice of her angelic features, had he been awake at the time. Azmaria's brown eyes opened slowly, adjusting to the darkness of the room, and finally resting upon the sleeping boy's face. She smiled, reaching out her hand to take his, the sudden movement, though it was small, causing Joshua to wake. His blue eyes gazed at her, and he smiled, showing that he was glad she was all right.

"How long have you been here?" Azmaria asked softly.

"Since we got back. You almost drowned." Joshua replied, just as soft. Azmaria nodded.

"You saved me?" Joshua nodded. Azmaria flashed a beautiful smile at the boy who had saved her life .. the boy she secretly loved, but was too shy and afraid of what he felt to try and tell him.

"Thank you .. I owe you a lot, Joshua."

The two were silent for several moments, before Joshua broke the awkward silence once more.

"Azmaria?"

"Yes, Joshua?"

Silence.

"Joshua?" Azmaria tried again.

" .. Never mind," Joshua said kindly, and brushed Azmaria's bangs away from her angelic face. "Get some rest, okay?" He said softly.

"Okay." There was another few moments of silence, before Azmaria broke the silence once more.

"Joshua .."

"Hmm?"

" .. You can .. sleep in the bed with me if you'd like .. you can't get any rest if you're going to stay in that chair all night .."

Silence once more.

"Are you sure?" Joshua asked, to which Azmaria answered

"Of Course." Joshua smiled gratefully and climbed into the bed next to Azmaria as she scooted over to make space for him.

"Goodnight .." Azmaria whispered to her best friend. She was shocked when Joshua wrapped his arms around her small frame, but accepted the protective guesture, smiling.

"Goodnight, Az." The two fell asleep shortly after that last word was spoken, enjoying each other's company while it lasted. They enjoyed it now, for they would probably never hear the end of it from Rosette and Chrno when morning came.

oo

**A/N:** It is 3:52 AM on Wednesday, March 23, 2005. It took me 2 days to write this, and 3 days of homework to finally get it finished! Be joyous, all fans of this story; This may be the last chapter of this story for a while to come. Tomorrow I get my report card, and I am almost certain that I won't be on the computer for quite a while. Anywhre from 5 to 9 weeks, actually. I will be writing more of this while I am away, though! You can bet Chrno's horns on that! So if I don't return in a while, please keep up the hope! This story will be completed, if it's the last thing I do! Oh, and thank all of you for the reviews! Big thanks to **Kisho Myst**, who has rewiewed this story twice, and I hope will continue to review! I get the feeling that **Kisho** is this story's stalker now. xD Oh well, a lot of stories have stalkers. Thanks to everyone! Please leave me more nice reviews while i'm gone!

_**Next Time: **Since Chrno has realized just how deep Joshua's feelings for Azmaria run, he decided to have a talk with him, to try and persuade him to finally admit his feelings to her! Unknown to Joshua, though, Rosette is doing the same for Azmaria! Will they finally be able to admit their feelings and live happily ever after? Find out next time! **Stay Tuned!**_


	4. We Know

**Disclaimer: **

**Rule No. One: I don't own Chrno Crusade**

**Rule No. Two:** **See Rule No. One. **

**Author's Note:** Yes! FINALLY! I'm Typing this! I had a little bit of it already written in my notebook, but now that I refuse to write any more of IY,TNG, i've got a bit more time on my hands. But anyway .. It's been a really long time, hasn't it? I've written two more fanfics, one of them which i'm hoping I can continue, and i'm working on another one, I need to finish the first chapter of **_Welcome the the House of Chaos_**, and get started on a few others .. yeah. n.n; I've got so many ideas, and so little time to write them. Hopefully with the fast-approaching summer (School ends on Friday May 20th over here! YAY!), I can get some things done .. like fanfiction. n.n Anyway, thanks to all who have reviewed! Here's chapter four .. ENJOY!

_**Someone Like Me**_

_**By: Rika**_

_**Chapter IV: We Know**_

**oo**

Rosette sat at the breakfast table, a pensive look on her face telling the people around her that she was deep in thought about something. People often asked her what she was thinking about, but she never answered. Chrno, however, knew exactly what was going through his love's mind. He had noticed it too - Joshua and Azmaria weren't eating breakfast. They weren't even at the table. It was peculiar, even though they both knew Joshua didn't like to get up early. They thought at least Azmaria would, though. And If Joshua was in Azmaria's room all night .. then he probably would have been here with Azmaria, or at least getting her something to eat, since she was still supposed to be resting from her near-death experience. Chrno looked to Rosette and offered a comforting smile.

"What do you think is going on with those two, Rosette?" He asked quietly, so that the nuns and priests eating beside them couldn't hear. Rosette snapped out of her thoughts and smiled over at Chrno, placing a comforting hand upon his.

"They're in love. That's what's going on," Rosette said in a tone of voice that suggested that it was obvious. Chrno sighed exasperatedly.

"I know that, Rosette." It was Chrno's turn to look in thought now. "I think we should talk to them." Rosette looked at Chrno like he was crazy.

"TALK TO THEM! ARE YOU CRAZY?" Chrno sighed again.

"Yes, Rosette. Talk to them."

"But .. But Chrno, that's no fun!" Rosette crossed her arms and pouted like a child. Chrno chuckled, then stated his reasonings.

"Rosette, they're going to find out that we know sooner or later. They also need some desperate help if they are going to tell each other how they feel." Rosette looked up at Chrno, a bit surprised.

"How would they need help telling each other?" Chrno smiled.

"Rosette, remember that Joshua may be your brother, but he dosen't come out and say things as easily as you do. Especially when it's something about who he loves." Chrno smiled and whispered something else to Rosette before he stood and left the table.

"You go talk to Azmaria. Tell Joshua to meet me at the fountain outside." Rosette watched him as he left, almost in disbelief, yet she thought his reasons made sense. She grinned, then stood from the table as well, walking quickly torwards Azmaria's room, not knowing what to expect when she got there.

**oo**

Rosette reached Azmaria's room, and knocked on the door lightly, hoping that her brother and her friend were awake. There was no answer. She knocked again. Still no answer. A confused Rosette then put her hand on the doorknob, twisting it and cracking the door open. She poked her head inside, looking around .. and then she saw why they weren't at breakfast this morning.

The two were still curled up next to each other, asleep. Joshua had his arms around Azmaria, while Azmaria leaned her head against his chest. Rosette saw that their clothes were still on, and was relieved that they hadn't done anything serious. But she was still wondering what this meant .. She figured she could at least talk to Azmaria and find out.

Rosette quietly stepped into the room, closing the door behind her and walking to the bed. She placed a hand on Joshua's shoulder and shook him until he woke up.

"Rise and shine, sleepyhead .." She said in a singsong voice, watching as Joshua's eyes slowly opened. When Joshua realized that he was still in Azmaria's room, his arms around the girl he loved, he smiled and closed his eyes again.

"JOSHUA!" Rosette yelled, which made both Joshua _and_ Azmaria wake up with a start. They saw that Rosette was there, and their faces became red .. _very_ red. Rosette grinned, a look that read 'I caught you!' on her face. Joshua glared at his sister, then sighed. He knew now that she knew. And if she knew, then Chrno did too. He didn't say anything, though; He thought that silence would be best in this situation. Rosette held back a laugh and finally broke the silence.

"Joshua, Chrno wants to talk to you. He told me to tell you to meet him at the fountain. You do know where that is, don't you?" Joshua sighed and got out of Azmaria's bed, running his fingers through his hair in a futile attempt to brush it.

"Yes, Rosette. I know where the fountain is," Joshua said monotonously, and quickly walked out the door, not bothering to look at any of the two women before he left. Azmaria was still looking to the wall, her face still a tomato. Rosette looked to Azmaria and smiled.

"So, how are you feeling today, Azzy?" She asked.

"F-Fine .." Azmaria answered in a small voice. Rosette smirked.

"Are you sure?" Azmaria looked surprised.

"What do you mean?"

"You don't feel anything at all for my brother?"

" .. What do you mean?" Rosette laughed a bit.

"Azmaria, quit hiding it. I know you're in love with Joshua." Azmaria looked down at her bedsheets.

" .. W-what makes you .. say that?" She sounded panicked.

"You've been around him a lot more than normal. I've seen you walking to your Choir Classes with him, eating lunch with him .. " Rosette paused, just for dramatic effect. "You've even been at that lake with him. Alone."

"T-That was an accident!" Azmaria protested. She knew it was worthless, though. Rosette already knew. "But .. yes. I .. I do love him .." Azmaria sighed, defeated.

"So you haven't told him yet," Rosette inferred.

" .. No. I'm too afraid of his answer to even try." Azmaria looked like she was going to burst into tears at any moment. Rosette gave her friend a hug.

"It's okay. Joshua's the same way. But you know .. neither of you will ever know anything unless you tell each other what you're feeling. And even if you two weren't meant to be .. you can still be friends. Am I right, Azmaria?" Rosette asked softly, trying to console her young friend. Azmaria sniffed, and Rosette could feel her head nod in answer.

"Believe me, if you two aren't together, being friends is good enough. You may want more, but even if you don't get it, he'll still be here. And If I know my brother well enough .. he feels the same way." She pulled away from Azmaria and looked her in the eye.

"Go tell him, Azzy." Azmaria smiled and nodded, swinging her legs over and standing up .. unfortunately, she stood up a little too quickly, and ended up sitting on the bed a few seconds later. Rosette laughed.

"What's the rush? Chrno's probably still talking to Joshua right now." Azmaria smiled sheepishly, then stood up again, a bit slower this time.

"Just make sure the doctor dosen't know? Joshua's going to be worried enough, I don't need a doctor telling me to rest," Azmaria giggled and stepped over to her closet, pulling out her uniform for the day and beginning to change. Rosette nodded.

"I know how that is!" Rosette exlaimed. Azmaria finished dressing, and was in quite a hurry to get out the door, when Rosette grabbed her arm.

"Azzy, I think you should wait until Joshua and Chrno are finished talking before .."

"But I have to go to the bathroom, Rosette!" Rosette looked at Azmaria strangely, then laughed, realizing that Azmaria probably _would_ have to go to the bathroom. She let go of Azmaria's arm and watched as she headed to the bathroom. Rosette followed her, deciding that she would wait for her outside of the room.

**oo**

Chrno sat on the edge of the fountain, listening to the sound of the running water, and of course, waiting for his future brother-in-law to come out so they could talk. Upon finally seeing Joshua walk out the doors of the order and into the courtyard though, Chrno smiled warmly and patted the seat next to him, telling Joshua that this was serious. Joshua sighed and walked over to the fountain, sitting down beside Chrno and staring down at the grass beneath his feet. Chrno looked to Joshua with a smile.

"Is everything okay, Joshua?" Chrno asked, to which Joshua looked up at the face of his future brother-in-law and sighed.

"Quit playing dumb, Chrno. You know what it is." Chrno chuckled.

"Yes, Rosette and I have known for quite a while now. But it was only yesterday that I knew how true it was." Joshua looked to Chrno in shock.

"What do you mean?"

"Yesterday, when Azmaria almost drowned .. Any of her friends would have rescued her from the water when they realized that she wasn't there. But you not only got her out of the water, you saved her life. Any normal person would have run to get help, and the most they would do would be to stay with her until the doctor was there. But you went right into action, that alone proves that you care deeply for Azmaria," Chrno explained with a smile. "It was almost as if you were determined to save her, that you loved her too much to let her die in front of you. In fact .. that's exactly what it was, wasn't it, Joshua?" Joshua blushed, but nodded his head in response.

"I do love her .. I love her so much that If she were hurt, I would die .." Joshua crossed his arms over his chest. "I just can't find the right words to explain it .. and i'm too afraid of rejection. I know Azmaria wouldn't want to hurt me like that, but if she didn't feel the same way, I would be very hurt .." He sighed. Chrno looked to Joshua and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"But you'll never know if you don't tell her. It's better than being torn up inside, living a lie." Joshua looked downwards at the grass again silently.

"Joshua .. tell her. It's the only way." Joshua looked up at Chrno, opening his mouth in protest, but Chrno cut him off.

"Tell her." Joshua closed his mouth, swallowed, then nodded slowly.

"Okay. God knows I want to .." Chrno smiled, then took his hand off of Joshua's shoulder and looked to the doors of the order, which had just opened to show that Rosette and Azmaria had come outside. Rosette wore her usual grin, while Azmaria blushed and looked to the ground immediately when she saw Joshua. Rosette urged Azmaria foreward, walking torwards Chrno and Joshua with her. Chrno grabbed Joshua's arm and forced him to stand up. One look at Azmaria, though, and Joshua's face was red as well, his gaze averting torwards the ground, like Azmaria's. Rosette and Chrno grinned at each other, then pushed Azmaria and Joshua gently torwards each other, causing them both to look up at each other, and look into each other eyes.

" .. Az .. " Joshua broke the silence ..

"Joshua .. " Azmaria answered ..

"We need to talk." They said in unison.

**oo**

**AN:** Aaaaaaaand .. that's chapter four! Hehehe .. yes, evil cliffy. Next chapter is the last chapter, ya'll! -sniff- I'm going to miss working on this fic .. Ahh well. I'll have time to work on **_Purity, Welcome to the house of Chaos, One day, Ordinary People, _**and others. n.n I hope it was all worthwhile. Maybe i'll make some future fanfictions for Chrno Crusade? Hmm ... Hehehe. n.n Well, i'll see ya'll in the next chapter of **_Someone Like Me_**:D

_**Next Chapter .. Azmaria and Joshua finally reveal their feelings! Thanks to Chrno and Rosette's Help, they have finally done it! So, what do the two have planned for the future? And what about Chrno and Rosette's marriage? Will everything be happily ever after? Find out in the final chapter of Someone Like Me!**_


	5. Apostle Love

**Disclaimer:** Aww, come on! If you have read chapters 1-4 already, you have seen the many different little disclaimer thingies I already put up! Do I HAVE to write another one? x.x Fine, Fine, I don't own Chrno Crusade. BUT. Daisuke Moriyama does, and we love him! n.n

**Author's Note: **Need I say anything more than .. Final Chapter? I've had so much fun working on this, and I am so happy to see that the reviews have been good all the way. :D I'm planning on making many more AzzyxJoshua fics, so look out for them along the way, all right? n.n Okay, well, here it is! **_Someone Like Me is coming to an end!_**

_**Someone Like Me**_

_**By: Rika**_

_**Chapter Five: Apostle Love**_

**oo**

_**Last Time .. **_

_Rosette urged Azmaria foreward, walking torwards Chrno and Joshua with her. Chrno grabbed Joshua's arm and forced him to stand up. One look at Azmaria, though, and Joshua's face was red as well, his gaze averting torwards the ground, like Azmaria's. Rosette and Chrno grinned at each other, then pushed Azmaria and Joshua gently torwards each other, causing them both to look up at each other, and look into each other eyes._

_" .. Az .. " Joshua broke the silence .._

_"Joshua .. " Azmaria answered .._

_"We need to talk." They said in unison._

**oo**

"Chrno, hurry up!" Rosette whispered loudly to her fiancee, all the while tugging at his arm in a desperate attempt to drag him torwards Joshua and Azmaria's current area. Rosette's intentions were very obvious; she wanted to witness the moment in which her younger brother and good friend confessed their feelings torwards each other. Chrno, on the other hand, was reluctant to spying on them, and was trying everything he could possibly think of to keep her away from them.

"Rosette, it's not nice to spy, you know .." Chrno whispered while continuing to be dragged until they were crouching behind some bushes that were nearby to the area. Rosette looked to Chrno with a pout.

"I know, Chrno, but this is Joshua's first love, and his first confession to his first love. You didn't think that I was actually going to miss this, did you?" The overjoyed grin returned to the blonde-haired girl's face once again, and she giggled softly in her excitement. "To be honest, I've always wanted to see this, to see just how the _Joshua Christopher _ handles himself in a time like this." Chrno sighed and shook his head.

"Rosette, this is a private time for Joshua. We should give him his privacy. Azmaria, as well. You know that they both wouldn't like it if they caught us here. If they wanted us to witness their confessions, they would have just said it right there, and not go to some secluded area to do it." Chrno looked Rosette straight in the eye as he said this, his expression serious. Rosette gazed back at him, then blinked, her face attaining a thoughtful look.

"Yes, I suppose you're right, Chrno," Rosette said with a smile that could almost pass for sincere. Chrno sighed in relief, then extended his hand out to Rosette's and grasped it tightly.

"So, shall we go?" Chrno said with a smile. Rosette grinned and squeezed her fiancee's hand slightly before averting her gaze back torwards Joshua and Azmaria.

"Nope! I'm still staying to watch!" Rosette said with an evil chuckle, with an equally evil smirk accompanying it. Chrno sighed once more in exasperation at his love's stubborn nature. He began to reach for Rosette's arm to pull her up and drag her back torwards the opposite direction, but was stopped by Rosette's hand on his once more.

"You don't want them to see us, do you Chrno?" Rosette said, evil smirk still plastered on her face. Chrno thought it over for a moment, then sighed, hanging his head in defeat.

"All right, Rosette. You win."

Rosette looked torwards the lovebirds again with a smile. "Don't I always?"

**oo**

Joshua led Azmaria by the hand into a seperate area of the courtyard, where he thought they could have some privacy for their conversation. He was definately feeling very nervous about this whole ordeal, and he knew Azmaria was too; he could tell by the slight tremble of her petite hand within his. _'The last thing I want is to mess up and end up saying something wrong .. I hate it when i'm nervous, i'm not myself ..' _He thought to himself, trying to ignore the butterflies that fluttered around in his stomach from just thinking about confessing his love to Azmaria. He had felt the feeling before, every time he thought about telling her, and he had to say, it was definately worse right now. He felt that he was going to burst, because he knew he was going to have to confess this time. He had to. She deserved to know .. _'But she also deserves better,'_ the voice in the back of Joshua's head spoke out inside his mind. If Azmaria wasn't with him at the moment, he would have shook his head to get rid of the thought, to convince the voice that it thought wrong. All Joshua could do right now was stare ahead of him and blush, leading the one he loved to a more private area; leading her to his confession of love.

Azmaria suddenly stopped walking, grasping Joshua's hand tightly in her attempt to tell him to stop as well. Joshua noticed the pressure applied to his hand and stopped, turning around and staring at Azmaria while still grasping her hand. Azmaria gazed into Joshua's eyes and offered a gentle smile, telling him once more 'It's all right. I'm here.' And he smiled as well, answering back in his own little way. His other hand grasped Azmaria's free hand, and held that hand as well. All was silent for a moment, just the two of them staring into each other's eyes, neither of them realizing what was happening, or that they had an audience of two watching them. It was just the two of them for a moment, the two of them lost in each other.

It took a moment for the two of them to realize that they were staring at each other again, and that they had to 'talk,' as they put it. They looked away from each other, and unclasped hands, their faces a deep red color. It was Joshua who spoke first.

"Uhh .. Az?" He asked shakily, still looking in the opposite direction from her.

"Yes, Joshua?" Azmaria responded in a small voice.

"Do .. do you .. remember that day at the lake? When it was only .. the two of us ..?" Joshua asked quietly, then turned to face Azmaria with a serious expression on his face, though his cheeks were still tinted dark red. Azmaria's mahogany eyes averted torwards Joshua's face, then met his bright blue eyes, staying there. She smiled.

"Yes, I remember. We .. were having a tickle war!" Azmaria said, then began laughing at the memory. Joshua remembered that, and began laughing as well. They both laughed for another minute or so, then calmed down once more. But one look at the other's face spouted another laughing fit from the two of them. They calmed down once again a few moments later, then began talking seriously again.

"But then .. I went to tickle you again .. and I .. uhh .." Joshua began to blush once more, recalling the memory. "I fell over on top of you." Azmaria blushed as well, then nodded.

"I could swear, my heart was beating so fast .." Azmaria said in an almost inaudible tone. Joshua smiled, then continued.

"Our faces-"

"We almost kissed, didn't we, Joshua?" Azmaria interrupted, to which a suprised Joshua nodded. Azmaria continued.

"And it happened again the day after, when we went to the lake with Rosette and Chrno .. I went to go check on you, to see if you were all right, and we ended up having a moment, then sort of just staring into each other's eyes, and before we knew it, we were-" Azmaria was cut off by the feel of Joshua's hands gently caressing her face, bringing her face upwards so that he could see her better. Joshua smiled, and spoke again.

"And then, at the lake, Rosette and Chrno .."

"Pushed our faces together .. " Azmaria finished, to which Joshua nodded.

"And our lips met for a moment .. and we shared a very awkward kiss .." Joshua's face was leaning downwards torward's Azmaria's again, but this time he realized what he was doing; this time he meant to do this. Azmaria's cheeks were tinted with crimson, and she kept on staring into Joshua's eyes.

"I love you, Joshua .." Azmaria whispered. Though she didn't mean to say it at that exact time, she still meant every word. Joshua's smile grew even wider.

"I love you too, Azmaria," he whispered back to her. He leaned down a little more torwards her face, so that his lips were almost touching hers. "So, about all those attempted kisses, and that one at the lake .. do you want to try it again?" Joshua asked softly. Azmaria gave her response soon after, by standing up on the tips of her toes and placing her lips onto his. Joshua was suprised at this reaction from Azmaria, but responded, nonetheless. His hands continued to caress her face gently as he continued to kiss the girl that he loved with all of his heart, easing her back onto her feet gently as he did. Azmaria's arms wrapped gently around his neck, and they stayed like that for as long as they could, before pulling back reluctantly and smiling at each other sweetly before pulling each other into an embrace.

"How long?" Azmaria asked quietly while they were still embracing.

"A few years .. how about you?" Joshua answered.

"More or less the same," Azmaria said, and Joshua knew she was smiling brightly. He knew that she was happy, and he knew that .. because he felt the same.

**oo**

Back over in the bushes, Rosette sighed and leaned back into Chrno, who put his arms around her with a warm smile. Rosette looked up to the face of her devil and smiled back.

"It couldn't have been any better, Chrno .." Rosette said softly, still smiling, a hint of tears in her eyes. Chrno leaned down and gave her a quick kiss on the lips before replying.

"I liked ours better," Chrno whispered, taking his hand and stroking Rosette's blonde locks gently. Rosette giggled.

"Why was that?" she asked, reaching a hand up to cup his face.

"Because it was us, Rosette," Chrno said with a smile, continuing to comb his fingers through her hair. Rosette sat up at that moment and faced Chrno, tackling him to the grass below them and lowering her face down, capturing Chrno's lips with her own, cupping his face in her hands. Chrno immediately wrapped his arms around her waist, pressing his lips as much as he could back onto hers, the two of them continuing to kiss for the few moments afterwards, until they ran out of air. They pulled away, panting, staring into each other's eyes for a moment. They were going for another kiss when they heard voices coming from somewhere above them.

"Jesus, Azmaria! They're worse than we are!" Joshua's voice said with a laugh, to which Azmaria's giggle joined him.

"Well, that's probably because they're engaged, and have been a couple for longer!" The new couple laughed, watching as Rosette and Chrno looked up at them, looks of shock on their faces.

"Since you two are finished playing matchmaker, don't you think you should get working on wedding plans? I saw some of the things that Sis had, and they really could use a little bit more work. No offence, Rosette," Joshua said with a playful smirk. Rosette immediately got up off of Chrno and marched herself right up to Joshua's face.

"SINCE WHEN DO YOU SEE MY WEDDING PLANS, JOSHUA?" Rosette yelled in mock anger. Once again, it was enough to make Joshua and Azmaria think they were going to the butcher shop in the next few minutes. Joshua smirked.

"Since you left them out on the cafeteria table last week, ROSETTE!" He smiled triumphantly as Rosette's jaw dropped.

"Relax, nobody else saw them. I put them back in your room, where they belong. Not even Azmaria has seen them, though i'm sure she wants to." Chrno sat up and chuckled a bit at the scene, deciding to change the subject before Rosette went postal on everyone.

"So, you two finally confessed? Are you two an official couple now?" Chrno acted like he and Rosette didn't know, but the two knew better.

"I don't know, you tell us! You two saw the whole thing, after all .." Joshua said with a grin, which made Azmaria giggle at his side.

"Yes, Chrno, we are," Azmaria answered, giving Joshua a light smack on the arm. "It's not nice to spy, though." Chrno looked to Rosette with a smug expression. Rosette glared at Chrno for a second.

"I know, Chrno." Rosette sighed, then brightened up and looked to Azmaria and Joshua again. "So, when can we expect the wedding?" Joshua blushed, and decided to let Azmaria speak for him.

"I don't know .. maybe when we've been together for as long as you and Chrno have?" Azmaria answered, which made Joshua burst into laughter. Rosette's expression was shock once more.

"ButButBut .. That will take FOREVER!" Rosette shouted.

"Well, we're not going to get married YET, Sis .. I mean, come on! We just got together, for pete's sake!" Joshua said, and sighed exasperatedly. "Besides, you should be concentrating on _your_ wedding, not _ours._"

Rosette sighed. "All right, All right .." Chrno stood up and held out his hand for his wife-to-be to take a hold of.

"We had better get back to the order, before Sister Kate realizes we're gone and has a heart attack!" Chrno said with a laugh. Rosette laughed too and took Chrno's hand, beginning to walk torwards the order with him, hand in hand. After a while she looked back to check and see if Joshua and Azmaria were behind them, and sure enough, they were, and they were holding hands. Azmaria was giggling, as Joshua grinned boyishly once more, bringing Azmaria's hand to his lips and kissing her hand for a moment, making Azmaria laugh even more. Rosette smiled at the scene, and looked back to Chrno.

"I see a bright future for those two, Chrno," Rosette said, the smile still plastered upon her face. Chrno took a look at the two, then smiled as well, looking back to the love of his life with the same smile.

"Yes, I believe so, Rosette. I believe so."

**.THE END.**

**Author's Note: **AND IT HAS FINISHED! n.n YAY! Okay, now I'll have to get to work on the NEXT installment in this little Chrno Crusade mini-series .. featuring the wedding of Rosette and Chrno, and deeper look into Joshua and Azmaria's relationship! n.n YAY!

And yes, I was planning that all along. :3 I had so much fun doing these stories, that i'm going to make a series of multi-chapter fics, and possibly some one-shots. n.n So, expect that from me when i'm not busy writing other stuff! n.n I'm doing the writing for two webcomic type things, so i'm gonna be a bit busy for quite a while. n.n

THANK YOU, EVERYONE, FOR READING, REVIEWING, AND LOVING THIS STORY!

If I hadn't have gotten this many awesome reviews, I probably would have given up. Also, finally getting to see the Chrno Crusade anime, and getting some of the DVDs myself, as well as Mangas 1-5, really helped my inspiration. Also, Coldplay helps. n.n Coldplay is good. But anyway, THANK YOU ALL. I LOVE YOU.

Until The next Story ..

Rika. n.n


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